Chapter 71: The Maiden’s Offered Kiss

Trembling, Su Nian’s voice quivered with a sob.

“I… I came to beg for… my master’s forgiveness. I shouldn’t have trespassed into your dungeon.”

Her eyes brimmed with helplessness and humiliation, as though a dark tide had swallowed her whole.

Her body shivered faintly, her hands clutching the hem of her skirt, knuckles whitening from the strain.

“Daily Task: Address the Horned Demon as Master 3/3, 3,000 Humiliation Points (completed).”

“Ding-dong! The system detects the host knocking on the Horned Demon’s door at midnight, begging for forgiveness. Humiliation Points increased by 9,148.”

“Ding-dong! Absorbing humiliation emotions, Annoyance Points +9,148.”

The exquisite maiden was backed into a corner, her pitiful, tearful expression enough to stir pity in even the hardest heart.

Yet Chu Tian only let out a cold sneer.

This woman—every time she meant to deceive him, she wore this exact look.

And even setting that aside, the blatant absorption of her humiliation emotions didn’t lie.

The girl before him was merely enduring, biding her time.

Perhaps tonight, given the chance, she’d unleash a fierce blast of magic right at his head.

“Oh? Is that so?” he drawled.

“But begging for forgiveness without a gift… could it be you’re offering yourself as the gift?”

Chu Tian released her chin, his hand sliding to her cheek, fingers grazing the silken, jade-like skin.

His gaze burned hotter still.

Su Nian’s body trembled, yearning to shrink away yet too afraid to move.

She could only squeeze one eye shut, forcing herself to endure the revulsion and shame, standing rooted to the spot.

In that moment, her mind raced.

If she let this wretched Horned Demon have his way, not only would she fail her task, but she might cross a line she’d sworn never to breach.

Before knocking on his door, she’d known this was for a mission.

After all, a task marked as “daily” meant it had happened before—at least she wouldn’t face a new humiliation.

Two tasks remained.

“Daily Task: Masochist Constitution 0/1, 1,000 Humiliation Points, incomplete.”  

“Daily Task: Kiss the Horned Demon 0/1, 5,000 Humiliation Points, incomplete.”

Staring at the translucent system prompt hovering before her, she felt the Horned Demon drawing ever closer.

A decision crystallized in her heart.

She had to take control.

Her true aim was that if she could complete the task without letting this vile creature take further liberties.

Standing idly by, letting him toy with her, was not an option.

With resolve, Su Nian steeled herself.

She closed her eyes, lips—lush and coveted by countless others—pouting in humiliated surrender.

Rising on tiptoe, she pressed a fleeting kiss to the Horned Demon’s cheek, light as a dragonfly skimming water.

“Ding-dong! Humiliation Points increased by 4,854.”  

“Ding-dong! Annoyance Points +4,854.”

Even a kiss on the cheek flooded her with unbearable shame.

Before, she’d always been coerced, but this time, she’d acted of her own accord.

Yet the familiar chime of task completion never came.

“Daily Task: Kiss the Horned Demon 0/1, 5,000 Humiliation Points, incomplete.”

The task remained unfinished.

‘Damn it!’  

‘You blasted system, come out here! A kiss on the cheek isn’t enough? Does it have to be like that day when this wretch forced a kiss on me?’

Meanwhile, the sudden kiss, though only on his cheek, left Chu Tian stunned.

In his past life on Earth, and now in this strange new world, it was the first time a girl had kissed him—especially one as breathtaking as Su Nian, the beauty he loved and longed to protect forever.

Even knowing her act was born of desperation, not affection, it stirred his heart.

The lingering warmth on his cheek lingered in his mind.

Her shy, delicate demeanor pierced straight to the fierce desire buried deep within him.

At that moment, his possessiveness surged.

Were it not for the need to keep racking up Annoyance Points, he might have claimed the golden-haired beauty right then and there.

But he couldn’t let the night end so simply.

The fire in his heart had been kindled, and without collecting some “interest,” he’d be left burning.

On the other side, Su Nian, after her fleeting kiss, closed her eyes, fists clenched before her chest, bracing for the inevitable embrace from the man before her.

Her initiative had been for the task’s sake.

To kiss him fully, lips on lips—she’d rather die than do that again.

Kissing his cheek had already been mortifying enough.

This Horned Demon was her sworn enemy.

He’d defeated her time and again, forced her to kneel, imprisoned her, even captured humiliating photos and videos of her.

To kiss him was already her limit—she couldn’t bear more.

Thankfully, she’d braced herself mentally beforehand.

She’d expected revulsion, but oddly, it wasn’t as bad as she’d feared.

Beyond the shame of kissing her foe, there was a faint… thrill?  

‘No, impossible!’  

She must have misread her feelings.

Kissing a man could only bring disgust and loathing.

She was doing this for the task, nothing more.

As Su Nian reassured herself, eyes closed, waiting for the Horned Demon to take the lead and complete the task, the world suddenly spun.

Her dark red high heels left the ground, her legs, clad in black stockings, kicking into the air.

Caught off balance, she instinctively reached for something to steady herself.

But who else was there besides the wretched Horned Demon?

“Wha—what’s happening?”  

Her eyes snapped open, scanning her surroundings.  

To her shock, the Horned Demon had swept her into his arms, carrying her toward—somewhere.

What was he planning?  

‘No, no, no! He’s not going to throw me on a bed and do something worse, is he?’

Her legs thrashed in panic, struggling to escape his hold.

Yet, fearing a fall, her arms clung tightly to his neck.

“Don’t move, or I’ll tie you up,” Chu Tian growled, cradling her in a princess carry.

His voice, low and magnetic, carried an undeniable threat as he whispered in her ear.

The warning worked.

Su Nian could only submit, humiliated, to being held by the one who’d brought her so low.

Relief came when she saw their destination.  

The Horned Demon settled onto a sofa, placing her beside him.

But her perch was precarious—only a sliver of her hips rested on the cushion, most of her weight on his lap.

Chu Tian gazed down at the girl, inhaling the faint fragrance of her freshly bathed skin, mingling with her natural scent.

The softness of her warm body against his have drove him past restraint.

In an instant, before Su Nian could react, he closed the distance.  

Her soft, rose-red lips were claimed by his.

Having kissed her once before, Chu Tian found this time even smoother.

With her in his arms, her scent enveloping him, he pressed forward like a conqueror storming a fortress.

The sensation thrilled him, sating his hunger for conquest and possession, if only for now.  

To deepen the kiss, his left hand gently cradled her head, drawing her closer.

His right hand, free and wandering, found its own path…